![](https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/220610101011-priti-patel-rwanda-super-tease.jpg)
Britain’s government announced in April that it had agreed a deal to send asylum-seekers to the East African country, in a move that it insisted was aimed at disrupting people-smuggling networks and deterring migrants from making the dangerous Channel crossing to England from Europe.
The policy, which has drawn widespread criticism since it was unveiled by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, saw its first legal challenge on Friday, when the High Court granted an injunction preventing the first deportation flight on June 14. More than 30 people were expected to be on board, PA Media reported.
The challenge was brought by human rights groups Care4Calais and Detention Action, along with the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), a trades union representing civil servants in Britain’s Home Office, and four asylum-seekers facing deportation to Rwanda. They claimed UK Home Secretary Priti Patel’s policy was “unlawful on multiple bases,” and sought an injunction to stop the plane from taking off.